Advent Calendar
by WeAreCylons
Summary: This drabble series is part of our Christmas countdown (you might want to check out our twitter ;) ). So, be prepared for 25 peeks into Bill's and Laura's life together. And lots of fluff. Because Christmas. Cheers!
1. 1st December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **1st December**

"You gotta be kidding me, Bill," Laura said with an exasperated sigh, standing at the entrance of their house, looking at him and the package he was holding in his hands.

"Why, Laura? Oh come on, it's gonna be freezing cold out there soon!" To prove his point, it had started to snow just that very minute. With a triumphant smile, he held the package up again. "See? And I even got a discount."

Laura squinted at the picture at the front of the package. She had left her glasses on her desk when she had rushed to get the door when the bell hadn't stopped ringing – and had ended up slightly annoyed when she found her husband standing there with a lopsided grin, mumbling something about having misplaced his keys.

"Still – you're really asking me to put a giant bird house in our front yard?" He nodded in approval, sensing that he might win this round.

Slowly, Laura took a step towards him, took the package out of his hands and placed it next to the door. "Alright. But don't expect me to feed those birds with sunflower seeds every day. That's your responsibility, am I making myself clear?" He replied with a curt nod. "Yes, Sir".

She mockingly raised her eyebrows and leaned over to kiss one of his where a snowflake had just landed.

"Well, then let's get you inside now, it really is freezing out here."


	2. 2nd December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **2nd December**

The only thing that was missing was a fireplace.

Apart from that, the place looked incredibly cosy now with its piles of books, rugs and a dozen candles bathing the room in warm light, and one would actually not have guessed that they were on a ship, a Battlestar, after all.

They were both curled up on the couch, Laura on one end, Bill on the other, feet touching in the middle. Both of them were reading a book and occasionally exchanged glances over the rims of their glasses, smiling tenderly at each other.

After a while, Bill lowered one hand and started to gently massage her feet, but flinched slightly when he discovered they were cold.

"C'mere," he mumbled and put his book on the coffee table. Laura, who didn't need any further encouragement, also put down her book and glasses, pulled the blanket over the two of them and was now curling into him, her arm resting on his chest.

With a contented smile, Bill put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer to him, inhaling her scent, and pressed a gentle kiss to her bare scalp. Laura hummed happily against his chest and closed her eyes, enjoying his warm, firm body next to hers.

If she could have, she would have crawled inside him and remained there forever, being as close to him as possible. Instead, she listened to his steady heartbeat which slowly lulled her to sleep while Bill continued to tenderly stroke the soft skin of her cheek, listening to her deep and regular breaths.


	3. 3rd December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **3rd December**

He looked at her with an incredulous expression on his face. "I don't know what you're talking about! What do you think has changed since last time?"

She puffed again and nudged him with her elbow. "Bill, I swear to Gods, I'll make sure Tigh will never let you off the ship again if you don't stop making fun of me right now."

To prevent himself from being pushed off the cot by a very angry Laura Roslin who was lying next to him, he simply moved closer, put a hand around her waist despite her efforts to shove it aside, and whispered in her ear:"For one thing, last time was on a pile of sandbags. For another thing, we were stoned out of our minds if you recall. That might have influenced the level of comfort you experienced then and the, I admit, rather uncomfortable situation now. Did you save any of these lovely, uh, herbs you had last time?" he added with a twinkle in his eye.

Laura, who had been listening to his low, rumbling voice close to her ear which had sent a shiver down her spine, abruptly sat up which really almost caused him to fall to the ground. "Bill Adama," she addressed him now with mock fury, "Is this how you try to lure me into smoking weed just to have sex with you in my tent again even if this cot here is much narrower than I remember?"

As a reply, he simply pulled her down to him again and silenced her with a deep kiss. Then he smirked at the woman underneath him who was still scrutinising him with narrow eyes."How about we just try it without the weed and who whimpers first loses?"


	4. 4th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **4th December**

There was no way he could leave her alone now, not after what had just happened.

The whole situation with the trial had already put a strain on their relationship, be it personal or professional. And then he had been forced to watch her being questioned by his son, a desolate expression appearing on her face which shortly after was being replaced with a presidential mask of coolness and superiority. He knew that she would need him afterwards, that she was about to lock herself up in a cage of iciness and distance in order to not allow her pain and sorrows to fully engulf her.

So, after the short and familiar journey to Colonial One, he was now standing in front of a woman who looked thoroughly shaken, appearing tiny and fragile in her rack where she had curled up a while ago. She hadn't even seen him yet, staring into a distant corner of the room with vacant eyes.

Carefully, he knelt down in front of the rack and gently pushed an errant strand of auburn hair out of her face. With this small gesture, he finally gained her attention. She looked up at him, her expression tired and resigned, and took his hand in both of hers with a sigh.

She cleared her throat and asked with a quavering voice, "What now, Bill?" He gave her delicate hands a soft squeeze, suppressing a moan because his knees had started to protest against this rather uncomfortable position. "Now, Laura, now we fight them."


	5. 5th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **5th December**

"What the frak is this weather even?" Bill yelled against the raging storm and the rain that was pounding down on the umbrella under which they had huddled together to stay as dry as possible while they were heading towards their front door.

They had been to the hardware store because Bill had set his mind on laying the tiles in their home gym himself during the holidays – which Laura initially had protested against and argued they could use the time for so many other things if they just hired a professional. However, Bill had maintained his ground, arguing that they could use the money they would save for so many other things.

So, of course, they had ended up discussing the best options and the most shockproof material that would survive boxing sessions plus the occasional round on their treadmill with an overly enthusiastic shop assistant.

Two hours, a signed delivery contract and two mulled wines later (the latter for an incredibly bored Laura who had kept herself busy in the arts and crafts section), they had finally made it home, but the second they had left the store, it had started pouring down on them.

Reaching the entrance to their house, soaking wet despite the umbrella, they quickly got rid of their coats and boots and put them next to the fireplace to dry. When Bill made his way to the kitchen to put the kettle on, he felt a firm grip on his wrist and, turning around, was facing Laura, standing only inches apart from him. Her cheeks were flushed from the cold and the wine and her dripping hair left trails of water on her neck, disappearing into the neckline of her shirt which revealed a hint of cleavage. She cocked an eyebrow and asked with an innocent grin on her face: "Honey, it's freezing in those wet clothes and I wouldn't mind getting rid of them as soon as possible. Care to join me in the shower?"

It took a while until Bill managed to put the kettle on in the end.


	6. 6th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **6th December**

With a hum, she closed her eyes again. It felt incredibly good and familiar and a warm tingling sensation spread inside her stomach as if a light made its way through her.

Leaning back on their bed, inclining her head to one side, she enjoyed Bill's soft lips wandering along her neck, her collarbone, caressing the sensitive skin of her breasts with tender strokes of his thumbs. Slowly, he made his way down, licking and kissing his way from her hard nipples across the tender skin of her belly until he reached the triangle between her legs that was no longer covered in dark red curls. Gently, he stroked the delicate skin of her thighs and carefully started circling her sensitive nub with languid movements of his tongue. Her hums had turned into low moans, encouraging him in his ministrations. There was no rush, no pressure in the early morning hours, just the joy of recreating the physical and emotional bond between them that had grown stronger every day. Sensing that she was getting closer, though, he sped up the strokes of his tongue and Laura buried her hands in his thick hair, gripping him tightly. With a shudder and another low moan, she arched her back and came, for a moment forgetting all that was around her, full of wonder and love for the man whose face was still immersed between her legs.

Slowly returning back from this parallel universe in which neither time nor place existed, she tenderly took his hands and pulled his face towards her to kiss him deeply, tasting herself on his lips. Maybe she should try to wake up this early more often if it meant starting the day with something fulfilling before tiresome Quorum meetings.


	7. 7th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **7th December**

"I think you shouldn't have offered to open that third bottle of Ambrosia, Bill," Laura whispered in his ear while they busied themselves at the drinks cart, fetching fresh glasses and some more snacks (well, pressed and seasoned algae, to be fair, disguised as snacks).

He couldn't suppress a chuckle and they both simultaneously turned their heads around to glance at their guests. Saul and Ellen had made themselves comfortable on the couch some time ago, telling joke after joke, more to themselves than to their hosts. The third bottle of Ambrosia stood on the coffee table in front of them, half empty already.

Right now, however, Ellen, completely unaware of being observed, had decided it would be a good time to boldly cup her husband and silence his surprised hiss with a deep kiss.

Laura's checks were suddenly covered in a dark shade of red and she quickly turned around to the cart to hide her face. Bill, however, leaned closer to her and put his hand on the small of her back.

"Laura," he murmured close to her ear again, "so, while these two seem pretty much occupied with something else than Saul telling us how much he loved dinner or Ellen repeatedly stating how gorgeous you look in that dress of yours tonight – which you do, by the way – how about we disappear some place else where I promise your cheeks won't be flushed from embarrassment?"

Not even waiting for her reply, although he could clearly see the flabbergasted expression on her face when he pulled her along, he opened the hatch, still undetected by the Tighs who were in a rather compromising position by then, and slipped out of his quarters into what promised to be a night without hangover at least for the two of them.


	8. 8th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **8th December**

Usually, Bill was the first to get up in the mornings, mostly an hour before Laura or even more. He used that time to shower, shave, get dressed, read the paper and make coffee.

When the scent of freshly-brewed coffee spread through their house, usually a dishevelled-looking Laura would pad into the kitchen in her bathrobe, sit down at the table next to him and wordlessly accept a steaming cup of the dark and strong beverage, receiving a soft kiss to her forehead from Bill who knew better than to talk to her before her first cup.

When Bill woke up this morning, however, he instantly missed the warmth of the body that usually lay curled up close to him and, opening his eyes, he saw that the bed was empty. He stifled a yawn and got out of bed to find his robe draped across the chair next to it instead of its usual place on their bathroom door.

He put it on with a frown and slipped out of their bedroom, suddenly shivering when a wall of cold air hit him. The front door to their living room was standing ajar and he detected Laura in her own bathrobe and her winter boots, standing outside on a thick layer of fresh snow that apparently had just fallen during the night. Their garden, the trees and the fields surrounding them were covered in a fluffy white coat, softly reflecting the sun that had started to rise above the hills.

When Laura saw him, she looked at him with a tender smile on her sleepy face and motioned for him to come closer. With a sigh, he wrapped his robe tighter around himself and stepped outside, feeling the cold creep under his pyjamas.

Embracing Laura from behind, he nuzzled her neck and took her cold hands in his, rubbing them gently. She leaned into his embrace, humming contentedly, and Bill hardly heard her whispering "It's just magical when the world suddenly seems so quiet after the first snow."


	9. 9th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **9th December**

The act of buying books had become one of their rituals.

They would normally either visit some of their favourite local book shops on a Saturday afternoon after they had done all the grocery shopping for the weekend or they would make a day trip to one of the small towns they had put on their „tourist to do list". Eventually, they would find themselves buried in a tiny shop in an alley they almost hadn't noticed while admiring architectural landmarks or taking pictures of delicate bridges across small water canals.

Depending on whether they had a book shopping list with them – yes, they did occasionally write these – or just wanted to browse the shops for new titles, they stood in front of old wooden shelves in premises full of nooks and crannies, one of them engrossed in reading the first chapter of the book in their hands while the other would also at least glance at it while scanning the shelves for more reading material.

This particular trip had led them to a tiny old town by the sea and after they had enjoyed a cup pf tea and a piece of chocolate cake as a treat after a long walk by the beach, they discovered one of these old book shops close to the small harbour.

Bill, standing in a corner of the shop, had unexpectedly discovered the first edition of a classic he hadn't read since school and Laura peeked over his shoulder to see what he had found. Leaning her head on his shoulder, she exhaled " 'Dreams Lost in the Future'? I wrote my thesis on it in college when I was with... Oh Gods...," she added with a whisper and Bill turned around to face her.

Gently lifting her chin, he studied her suddenly pale face. With knitted brows, his voice sounding surprisingly coarse, he asked: "When you were with whom, Laura?" Laura closed her eyes for a moment and then replied with a small voice:"I'll tell you another time, Bill. Let's just say the words "love" and "trust" can apparently be interpreted in different ways..."

He could feel that whatever had happened back then must have broken her heart, but decided not to push further. Instead, he replaced the book into the shelf and pressed a gentle kiss to her temple before putting his arm around her waist and pulling her closer to him. Mumbling against her soft hair, he asked her: "But you do know that you can trust me and that I do love you, right?" With a hum, she gently squeezed his hand on her waist. "I do, Bill, I do," she replied and leaned into him, tenderly kissing his warm cheek. Arm in arm, they left the shop and, realising it was dark outside already, they decided to head back home and make themselves comfortable on the couch with a book they had bought the week before, ending the day with another of their book-related rituals.


	10. 10th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **10th December**

„So, you basically told them that we weren't free tonight because I was forcing you to help me with the Christmas decorations in the house?" Laura asked with an amused smile on her face.

Bill, who had been busy watching his folded hands in his lap after he had ended the call with Saul with a satisfied grin on his face, looked up and faced her, both of them sitting on the thick and fluffy rug in front of their fireplace with two glasses of Merlot.

It was a Saturday evening and Saul and Ellen had spontaneously (because spontaneity was one of their fortes) invited them to a party at their house. It seemed like there were plenty of people there already, judging from the noise of chatter and music in the background. And Bill, without batting an eye, had told Saul that Laura had planned this particular evening to put up the Christmas tree and all the other fairy lights and fir wreaths because Kara and Lee would come over for lunch the following day.

The latter part of his story was true, fair enough, but they had already finished decorating the house hours ago and had decided to treat themselves to a quiet evening with some pasta and an old movie and had thought about going to bed when the phone rang.

Bill took a sip of his red whine and raised an eyebrow. "Well, yeah, I did." Leaning a bit closer to Laura, he added: "And you know why? Because I know something that might be slightly more fun than driving over to a bunch of already drunk people who apparently have horrible taste in music." He took Laura's glass and put it on the table next to them, then gently took her hand and helped her to get up. With a smirk, Laura put her other hand on his chest and breathed with an innocent look on her face: "Oh and what would that be, Mr Adama?" Instead of a reply, Bill simply let the fingers of his right hand wander from her cheek over her neck until they reached one of her breasts, feeling the hard nipple under his soft touch. "Oh, Mrs Adama, since you're in charge tonight, you might wanna lead the way to our bedroom for a start."


	11. 11th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **11th December**

Slowly, very slowly he made his first steps on the shiny surface. The ground beneath him cracked quietly, but remained smooth which encouraged him to move further. It felt completely unfamiliar and he really tried to remain optimistic he'd get used to the gliding movements and those strange shoes on his feet.

Suddenly, he heard a voice calling his name close behind him and he almost started stumbling backwards, but an unexpectedly firm grip on his upper arm steadied him.

"Gods, Bill, have you never been ice skating before?" the woman on his right asked him with a provocative smile. She was wrapped in her warm coat, gloves and a wool hat, some of her auburn curls sticking out under it and reflecting the sun. Her cheeks were red from the cold and because she had already finished several rounds around the frozen lake, looking like she belonged there and had constantly been practicing in secret, and was studying him with gleaming eyes.

Bill, happy about her hand still firmly wrapped around his arm, grumbled a silent "Always been more of a Pyramid and boxing guy, you know that, Laura." Sensing his embarrassment for looking less than elegant in his skates, his back hunched and fists clenched, she gently stroked his cold cheek with a gloved finger. "Oh come on, honey, this is gonna be fun. Trust me." And, taking his hand, she made a slow and smooth movement forward, carefully pulling Bill along with her who had decided to at least give the whole thing one more chance to avoid constantly being teased about it in the future.


	12. 12th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **12th December**

„I will be back in a few days and if you'd like, we can ...talk more about that night..."

It had been a few days and now she was back for a briefing. They hadn't talked much during that time, mostly about matters regarding the fleet, but the tension had been palpable even during those calls. After the briefing in which they had kept their conversation on a professional level only because Tigh had been present as well, Laura took her time to pack her bag while Bill shuffled through his files for the umpteenth time to bridge the time until their unavoidable "talk" would take place.

Laura, finally finished with rearranging her bag and having rechecked whether she had packed everything, eventually turned around to face him. Bill stood up, hands folded, but kneading them nervously and waited for her to make the next move. Their faces displayed their understanding of the situation: they could not deny that there was a mutual attraction and had been there for a long time, but speaking it out loud was a completely different matter. It was quite apparent that it also wouldn't be spoken out loud, and that Laura's usage of the word "talk" would mean something else in the end.

When she made the first step towards him with an unreadable expression on her face, Bill imitated her movements and they stood in front of each other, still keeping a certain distance. It was Laura who broke the silence after a few moments of nonverbal communication with their eyes only. She moved a bit closer towards him and, standing only inches apart, carefully put one hand to Bill's chest. Looking him in the eye, she asked in a rather matter-of-factly tone: "So, would you like to talk more about that night now, Admiral?" Taking a deep breath, Bill put his hand over hers and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Well, since you're here now, Madame President, I think we should make the most of our time..."


	13. 13th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **13th December**

The „Dance" as they called it was over now, at least for him. She had led him to his quarters, had opened the hatch for him because he winced with every movement of his sore body and had told their security details to wait outside and to make sure the Admiral would not be disturbed.

Now, with the hatch closed behind them, they could, at least for a while, ignore their masks they had to uphold in public and be Laura and Bill again. The Laura and Bill who had been more than just the leaders of the fleet for a night on New Caprica and for so many times after that night. Who allowed a physical and emotional closeness despite their roles.

Carefully, Laura, who was still holding his arm, put her other arm around his waist and was about to lead them to his rack when Bill stopped her with a sigh. "I need to clean myself up first, can't go to bed with all that blood on my face. They'd complain about the additional laundry tomorrow." Nodding with a small smile on her face, Laura slowly steered them into the other direction towards the head.

When Laura let go of Bill who was standing in front of the sink now, he grabbed a cloth and held it under the stream of warm water. Lifting his right arm to get rid of the blood on his face, though, he suddenly hissed and let his arm drop. "Can't hold it up that long, hurts like frakking hell." Laura stepped closer again and gently took the wet cloth out of his hands. "Bill, turn around, please. That's why I'm still here." Facing her and leaning his back on the wall behind him, Bill allowed Laura to wipe the blood off his face, wincing every time she came across a particularly deep cut in his skin. After a few minutes and a last round with a new clean cloth, she took a fresh towel from the shelf behind her and dried his face with careful dabs.

They were still standing close to each other when Bill carefully put a bandaged hand on hers that still held the towel and the two of them locked gazes. "Thank you, Laura." Instead of a reply, she put her arm around his waist and a hand on his arm again to steady him and finally led them to the rack, helping him to settle down. She didn't let go of his hand, though, but remained sitting there and finally spoke again with a quiet voice, keeping eye contact with him. "Anytime, Bill. You know that."


	14. 14th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **14th December**

What had been intended as a short walk into the next village on a Sunday afternoon, ended up to be more complicated than they had thought. Theoretically, according to Bill's map, they should have arrived at their destination for a rest, a small cafe, more than thirty minutes ago. However, they were still walking through the forest the map had guided them into a while ago.

And it wasn't like Laura minded spending more time outside on this lovely, crisp winter day, especially because she had been stuck inside marking essays for the past two days while Bill had been busy giving a weekend course in the military academy. In fact, she loved walking next to him through the snow, his gloved hand holding hers. They had finally had time to catch up on what had happened during the week, and she simply enjoyed their comfortable conversation.

But Bill, unhappy about having trusted an obviously wrongly-scaled map, was making remarks from time to time about how much he wished that the person responsible for the map would be forced to sit in the cold woods for two days, without any food or hot beverages. Laura smiled to herself whenever he started grumbling and her grip around his hand tightened for a moment until he realised that he was spoiling her mood and that she was actually fine with their detour.

After a while, though, he started imagining all the things he would do to the poor guy (or woman), so she stopped dead in her tracks and pulled him towards her so that their faces were only mere inches apart, seeing each others' breath rising into the cold air. "Bill. Will you get a grip now. You're not making this whole thing any better by being the grumpiest version of yourself I've seen in ages." Not allowing him to contradict her or justify his complaints again, she cupped his face with both of her gloved hands and kissed him boldly on the mouth, surprised to find Bill's skin being still comparably warm despite the cold. He gave in and deepened the kiss, embracing her and pulling her closer.

When the need to draw breath became paramount, Laura pulled away a bit and, licking her lips, smiled at him, cocking an eyebrow. "See? You might as well enjoy yourself." With a grunt, he pulled her closer again and imitated her actions, this time pressing his lips on hers with slightly more force than before. It would still be a long way home after all.


	15. 15th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **15th December**

Although she knew that it was no longer a simple cold, she couldn't stop teasing him about it.

Bill had been adamant about going to work despite looking paler each day and his voice being raspier than usual. She had subtly suggested he take at least the morning off to go see a doctor, but he'd only grumbled about how he didn't need a doctor to hold his hand while he was sneezing and coughing once or twice a day.

That once or twice had turned into a nasty cold with a fever by Friday and Laura had simply shoved him into the car on her way to work and dropped him off at the doctor's, demanding for him to take a taxi home and to send her a text as soon as he was in bed.

He'd been signed off work with a bronchitis for a week and been sent home with antibiotics, despite his protests that he'd only need a day at home and he'd be as good as new again.

Now, on this very grey and cold Saturday morning, he was still asleep while Laura got up early to prepare coffee and some herbal tea. She poured them in a thermos flask and then made a quick trip to the market to get some fresh fruit and bread. When she returned around 9am and peeked into the bedroom with a hot cup of coffee in her hands, she found him still fast asleep.

Laura pondered whether to wake him or let him sleep a little longer, but eventually carefully lowered herself on the bed and gently stroked his hot and reddened cheek with her index finger. "Wake up, sleepyhead!" Bill slowly opened his eyes and blinked at her with a confused look on his face. "What time is it?" he mumbled with a coarse voice.

She looked at him with a grin on her face, her hand still lingering on his cheek. "It's past 9 already. And you told me you'd be fine and ready to go back to work today. As if," she concluded with a twinkle in her eyes. Bill took a deep breath and closed his eyes again for a moment, but then looked at her with a mischievous expression on his face, despite the fever that had obviously slightly gone up during the night. "Well, at least I've got you all for myself all weekend and can order you around to take care of me." Laura huffed in mock annoyance, but leaned down to press a soft kiss to his forehead. "As long as you listen to your nurse and stay in bed all day, that's fine with me."


	16. 16th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **16th December**

He was still fuming from his conversation with Baltar. It had cost him a lot of effort to not get up, shake the man and tell him that he should just take his prize and be happy about being addressed as Mister President from now on.

When Baltar had finally left, Bill remained sitting at the table for a while, staring at his folded hands in his lap. This was not the result he had hoped for, and not for the first time that day he wondered whether he had made the right decision to stop her from finishing what she and her allies had started. It had also cost him a lot of effort to see the tears streaming from her eyes on the other side of her desk that kept them at a professional distance and not get up, take her in his arms and tell her that they would find a way to fight on and win in the end.

After a while of pondering, he made a decision and called a shuttle to transport him to Colonial One immediately. When he got there, he was surprised to find Laura's office empty, not even Tory who usually welcomed him with an either unenthusiastic or at times slightly annoyed expression was anywhere to be found. He made his way across the room and pushed the curtains aside only to stop dead in his tracks and ask himself whether it had been wise to come here: She was sitting on the floor at the other end of the room, legs pulled close to her body, embracing them, and swayed lightly from one side to the other, staring into his direction. Her face was swollen and red from crying and it looked as if she had scratched her cheeks with her fingernails. She immediately detected him standing at the entrance, but didn't react to his presence; instead, she continued rocking back and forth, now looking at her knees.

No longer able to undo any of his decisions of that day, neither to give Baltar the presidency that at least by law was his nor to come here when he knew that the situation expecting him would require him to push aside formalities or professional manners, he crossed the room in three fast strides. He sat down next to her, groaning because his back protested against the uncomfortable position, and waited whether Laura would react now. Sensing that she still seemed incapable of acknowledging his presence, he carefully put an arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer to him, resting her head in the crook of his arm. It took a while until her limp body really relaxed into the embrace and when it did, Bill realised that she had fallen asleep. Even if he hadn't managed to console her earlier on that dreadful day, he would not leave until he was sure she was as okay as she could be and he held her in his arms, protecting her from the political madness as far as he could.


	17. 17th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **17th December**

With a sigh, she opened the door and stepped inside. It had been a long and exhausting day, crowned by a parent-teacher conference that took much longer than originally planned. All she wanted to do now was crawl into their bed, maybe have a cup of tea before.

Kicking off her shoes, however, a sweet smell reached her from the kitchen. She put her coat on the hallstand, threw her bag into a corner and made her way to the next room. Greeting her there was the sight of Bill's back, standing at the kitchen counter, seemingly busy with something. In the background, soft instrumental music was playing and the kitchen windows were fogged.

Quietly, she stole up on him, who apparently still had not noticed her arrival, and wrapped her arms around his middle from behind. His reaction was priceless: he dropped whatever he'd been holding in his hands – the sound when it collided with the hard surface was rather wooden – and cursed silently. "Has anyone ever told you that it's dangerous to sneak up on people who have a cookie cutter in front of them and a rolling pin in their hands?" he grumbled and turned around slowly with a crooked grin on his face and Laura finally saw what he'd been up to: tons of cookies of various sizes and shapes were stacked on a number of plates to cool and in front of him the next batch of snowflake-shaped cookies was waiting to be baked.

A comfortable warmth filled Laura from the inside and she actually forgot that all she had wanted to do was get to bed. Instead, she leaned into him and grabbed a piece of cookie dough lying behind him on the worktop, chewing on it with relish. "Don't be such a spoilsport, Bill. I could have a beautiful imprint of a reindeer on my cheek by now." He chuckled and pressed a soft kiss on said cheek. "Not gonna to happen. I know something much better to punish you for scaring me."


	18. 18th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **18th December**

She awoke with a start, feeling cold beads of sweat covering her face and the rest of her body.

It had been the same dream as the one during all the previous nights and she was still shivering just thinking about the pictures in her head. They had made her relive memories that she'd stored in a place deep down in her heart where she allowed no one to go, especially not herself. All of her dreams had been about the loss of the person she cared about most in her life now, and facing even the possibility of it made her want to scream in agony.

Suddenly, an arm was being put around her waist, pulling her towards the other side of the rack, and she was being pressed against his warm, firm body that was spooning her from behind. She could feel his hot breath on her skin when he planted a kiss on her bare scalp and murmured in her ear "Laura, go back to sleep. It was a bad dream. I'm here." She took a deep breath and relaxed into his embrace, allowing herself to be comforted and protected by him like in the nights before. Gently, she put her hand on Bill's that was still draped across her middle, slowly calming down and feeling the warmth spreading through her body again.

That place in her heart where she had buried more than she should have now felt more vulnerable to new memories than ever before, but this was not the time to dwell on what could happen. He was here with her, even if only for the moment, and with that thought, she finally fell asleep again.


	19. 19th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **19th December**

One glass of wine or Ambrosia were okay, she could handle that. But if she had more, chances were good that she couldn't fight the giggles anymore. She knew about this from many a past experience, and yet, tonight she didn't care.

She felt alive and happy and she wanted to celebrate that. Of course, she could have done that without being inebriated, but she wanted to lose control for once. And not the kind of losing control when she had taken chamalla and had no idea which side effects might occur this time. No, she simply loved the way she felt light inside and outside and was no longer able to brood.

Staring into the midnight sky, she thought that life seemed to offer some perspective again. Not in a professional sense, although she loved teaching the kids here, but in her own private life. As if he'd heard the musings in her head, he ran his hand up and down her arm several times. They had been sitting outside for quite some time and on New Caprica, there were no mild nights to stargaze.

"You're cold, Laura," he whispered against her hair, sitting as close to her as possible and shielding her body from the cold with his own, arms wrapped around her. She giggled and looked up into the tender, but worried look on his face. "I'm fine, Bill. Really. I'm enjoying this." To prove her point, she put a warm hand on his cheek, stroking it gently. He leaned closer to her and their lips met for a soft kiss, like the many times before when he had come down from the Galactica. Tonight they were only interrupted by more giggles that left her breathlessly holding her tummy, while Bill was actually happy to see her careless for once. She deserved to celebrate her life. And their time together, although limited to a few shore leaves now and then.


	20. 20th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **20th December**

Yawning, she stretched her arms over her head and was less than enthusiastic about having to get up. The bed was warm and cozy and getting enough sleep was a luxury she was only too happy about at the moment.

Her stomach began growling, however, and with a moan, she sat up and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. Well, there was not much swinging these days, more like dragging her own weight around the house. She gently rubbed her belly and, after a last look of regret at their tousled sheets, she finally got up and pulled her robe around her body.

When she opened the door which connected their bedroom to the living room, she immediately smelled the scent of coffee lingering in the air and stopped dead in her tracks. Weirdly enough, it was that particular scent that caused her stomach to turn sometimes and she waited for the reaction to happen. Yet, after a few moments, her body still didn't seem to mind it, and so she rather sluggishly made her way into the kitchen where she found him sitting at the table, reading the paper with a cup of coffee in his hands.

Bill looked up when he heard the scuffling steps and with a tender smile on his face, he got up to carefully wrap his arms around her and place a kiss on her forehead, one hand softly stroking the sensitive skin of her belly.

"How are we today?" he asked her, their faces close to each other, his blue eyes sparkling. Laura snort laughed and ran a hand through his ruffled hair. "We? I don't really know about myself yet, but apparently, the little princess decided to give her mummy a good night's sleep for once."


	21. 21st December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **21st December**

„Will you finally come to bed at some point, Bill?" She had no idea why he still could be that fascinated and not tired of staring. She was exhausted and all she wanted to do, frankly, was snuggle close to him and get some sleep.

He, however, was still standing by the cradle, looking blissfully happy and content just to stare at the tiny human in there. "You know that she's got your nose, right? But my eyes," he mumbled instead of answering her question which had been more of an invitation and turned around to face her with a proud smile.

Laura huffed and pulled the blankets tighter around her cold body. "And you're telling me now that you can see the colour of her eyes because...? She's asleep, honey, observe again tomorrow!"

Still, he couldn't really pull himself away from staring at the little girl whose fingers had been wrapped around his index finger since she had fallen asleep a while ago. So, eventually, Laura got up, cursing quietly when her bare feet touched the cold floor, and shuffled to the other side of the bed where they had placed the cradle because it was less draughty there.

Softly, she put her hand on Bill's upper arm and looked down at the object of his adoration, a tender smile appearing on her face which only grew wider when he put his arm around her waist and placed a kiss on her temple. "Okay, but seriously Laura, isn't she just beautiful?" he whispered close to her ear. Laura licked her lips and looked at him with an unreadable expression on her face. "She is. But you know someone else who is, too. And that person might get a bit angry at her husband if he does not join her in bed and warm her cold feet. Now, Bill." Finally, he carefully pulled his fingers out of the little girl's surprisingly firm grip and led his other lady back to bed, wincing when he felt her cold limbs pressing against his body. The last thought before he fell asleep was that he should probably accept her invitation a bit earlier the next day.


	22. 22nd December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **22nd December**

She had always been bad at shopping for Christmas presents and this year, it would be just the same as usual. Birthdays were fine because there was only one person to focus on and, of course, she wanted presents to have a personal touch. However, choosing presents for a whole bunch of people thoughtfully and consciously on time was beyond her and so once again, she was running through the mall with a list of ideas in her hand, but not really happy with what it contained.

Hundreds of people were rushing through the huge building with her and that made the whole affair even more stressful, faces flowing by that expressed only one thing: I want to go home again, frak those presents. Before entering the umpteenth department store of that day, she took a deep breath, looked on her list again and mumbled "Right. Lee and Kara. That should be fun."

The man who had been quietly walking beside her, carrying several enormous shopping bags, smiled at her, put the hand that was not holding any bag on her upper arm and squeezed it gently. "Laura, I told you already, we don't need to get these two anything. But if you really want to, we should get them new wine glasses. They have a tendency to disappear in their home and knowing Kara, I blame her talent for dropping things while doing household stuff." Laura ran a hand through her hair and sighed. "Alright, wine glasses it is. Speaking of, can we please take a break after this one? I feel very homicidal at this point..." He chuckled and put his free hand around her waist. "Well, wouldn't that be fun? 'Former President kills Christmas spirit.'" She poked him with an index finger, a grin appearing on her face, and together, after a mutual look of reassurance, they entered the crowded store.


	23. 23rd December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **23rd December**

All she heard was the noise of glass breaking and then a loud and angry „Frak this!"

She put her pen down on her desk and quickly made her way to the living room. Seeing what had happened, she didn't know whether to laugh or cry: Bill was standing in front of the Christmas tree they had put up that morning and was staring furiously at the lid of a box inside his hands, its bottom part and the respective contents widely scattered across the floor beneath him.

He noticed her leaning on the door frame and, with a scowl, growled at her: "Told you it'd be better if I only fell the tree and you decorate it..."

Laura, suppressing a comment, carefully moved around the bits of broken glass until she was standing right in front of him, took the lid out of his hands and chucked it to the floor as well while Bill was eyeing her with an increasingly grumpy expression on his face.

That expression turned into one of utter surprise when Laura unexpectedly slipped her hand inside the waistband of his sweatpants, looking him in the eye as innocently as she could and he felt himself immediately react to her touch. She leaned closer and tightened her grip. "Did I hear you say 'frak?' Well, if it helps, then by all means..."


	24. 24th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **24th December**

The smell of something burnt reached his nose and he was suddenly awake again, jumped from the couch and made his way to the kitchen.

When he walked through the door, all he could see was the light coming from the oven, the rest of the room was filled with dark, thick smoke. Coughing, he quickly ran to the windows and wrenched them open, then switched off the oven and opened it carefully. He managed to take the dish out with a pair of mittens, luckily enough holding his breath because the roast definitely was more than burned. He put it down next to the stove and looked around the room to find the person responsible for ruining their dinner, but she was nowhere to be seen. Even shouting her name several times did not have the desired effect, so, with a sigh, he decided to check the study upstairs.

Groaning (he had burnt his finger on the dish), he opened the door and couldn't believe his eyes: Laura was sitting in her armchair, deeply absorbed in a book, a pair of massive headphones covering her ears. Shaking his head, he crossed the room and nudged her leg.

Laura gave a start and stared at him with wide eyes, then quickly removed the headphones. "Did you say something, honey?" Bill huffed and pointed with his finger towards the door. "Nope. But you do know what you put in the oven a while ago, right?" Laura's face fell and she dropped her book. "Oh Gods! No! I've done it again, haven't I?" Bill simply nodded and put a hand on hers, rubbing its back with his thumb.

"The stores are still open," he suggested with a twinkle in his eye, "we can still pretend you made dinner." Laura playfully slapped his chest and her aggravation seemed to dissipate. "Fair enough. I'd better come with you then to choose what I might have cooked," she replied.

When Bill simply wiggled his eyebrows, she got up from the armchair and slowly left the room with him, her head on his shoulder and his arm around her waist.


	25. 25th December

Disclaimer: BSG (2003) and all the characters are property of Ron D. Moore. We merely borrowed his playthings to play a bit in his sandbox.

Enjoy! C & L

* * *

 **25th December**

They actually couldn't remember the last time they had spent such a wonderful and joyful Christmas.

It already started on Christmas morning when Bill got up as early as usual and, after he had put on his robe, quietly slipped outside the bedroom, but not without softly kissing Laura, who was still fast asleep. Looking outside the big window of their living room, he smiled when he saw that snow had fallen during the night. Laura would be beside herself because without snow, Christmas was not complete for her.

It all dated back to the many Christmases she had spent with her family and the traditions they had maintained over the years, even when she and her sisters had moved out and started working or going to college. The three girls would always build a snowman with their dad, its size depending on the amount of snow that had fallen, even if it would only end up to be several inches small. Meanwhile, their mum would be busy wrapping the last presents and making two versions of Christmas Punch, one for the girls and one for the two of them plus other guests like their own parents or siblings.

It had taken quite a while until Laura had finally opened up to Bill and told him about those beloved traditions when he had found her staring at the snowman outside the mall one day before Christmas the previous year. He had recognised the sad look on her face which he had seen many times before, but had never pushed her to tell him what was going on.

This year, she had announced that she wanted to revive that tradition again and had anxiously checked the weather report every night before they went to bed. Deciding that Laura would most certainly not be grumpy when he woke her up now, Bill scurried back to the bedroom, sat down on the edge of the bed, gently pushed the several strands of her hair out of her face and stroked her warm and soft cheek. Laura grumbled quietly and stretched out under the sheets before she slowly opened her eyes and blinked at him. Before she could say anything, though, Bill simply murmured: "Snow, Laura." Unexpectedly fast, she sat up, jumped out of the bed and ran into the living room, leaving a stunned Bill behind. He only heard her triumphant squeal and then she came running back into the room again. "Bill, this is perfect! I gotta start working on that punch before they arrive." And with that, she dragged him out of the room to assist her.

When Kara, Lee and their very exited little girls arrived at about lunchtime, Bill and Laura had finished preparing the presents and the punch, had set the table and after that had curled up on the couch, looking into the white magical world outside. Before their visitors could take off their coats, Laura knelt down in front of two pairs of blue eyes staring at her and asked with a mischievous smile on her face: "Sophie, Lily, how about he go outside again and see whether the snow is good enough to build a big snowman?"

Instead of a reply, four small arms suddenly hugged her around the middle and, giggling, she fought to maintain her balance and not fall over. The other three, who all knew about the snowman thing by now, exchanged happy glances and followed Laura who was being dragged outside: each girl had grabbed one of her hands and they were now babbling at her, telling her how they had boasted in kindergarten how cool their grandma was because she was still building snowmen instead of just sitting in an armchair like all the other grandmas, knitting socks.

At that, Laura looked back and saw Bill grinning at her which caused another fit of giggles. She would probably have to restrain herself when they served the punch later because she felt light-headed already. The voice of their youngest brought her back to their purpose, tugging at her hand. "Grandma, let's build the snowman here. He can look at the lake then." With a tender smile, Laura planted a kiss on the girl's forehead. "That's a lovely idea, sweetie. Let's do it." And while Bill, Kara and Lee observed them (each a glass of punch in their hand), Laura and the two tiny persons next to her rolled snow through the garden and collected twigs and stones, until at some point Laura felt a hand on the small of her back while she was busy putting buttons on the snowman's chest.

Looking to her right, she saw Bill kneeling next to her. He leaned in closer and whispered in her ear: "You look so happy, Laura." She smiled at him and a single tear escaped her eyes. "I am happy Bill, I am," and she kissed him softly on his lips and remained in his arms for a moment while the snowman received finishing touches from the girls. It would truly be a Christmas they would remember even many years after as one of the happiest in both their lives.


End file.
